Remembering The Fallen

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​The memorial stands as a tribute to those who died while protecting the lives and property of the citizens of Middlesex County

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​On November 12, 2015, at the Middlesex County Police Training Center in Edison, Middlesex County Prosecutor Andrew C. Carey and South River Police Chief Mark Tinitigan, who served as president of the Middlesex County Chiefs of Police Association, unveiled a memorial honoring 27 police officers who have died in the line of duty in Middlesex County since 1856.

The memorial, which is displayed in a hallway at the training center, consists of a full-color wall mural listing the name and agency of each officer. Adjacent to the memorial is a service tray containing a booklet that details the biological information and circumstances of the death of each of the officers.

The fallen officers are identified as:

Special Constable John Bodnar, Sr., Carteret Police Department

Patrolman William J. Cady, South Plainfield Police Department

Patrolman Robert A. Cardone, South Brunswick Police Department

Trooper William L. Carroll, Jr., New Jersey State Police

Patrolman Richard H. Conklin, South Plainfield Police Department

Officer Woodhull W. Davis, Juvenile Justice Commission

Patrolman Michael Dudash, Edison Police Department

Patrolman George Dunham, Franklin Township Police Department

Chief Charles Eberwein, South River Police Department

Trooper Werner Foerster, New Jersey State Police

Patrolman John Gurnovich, South Brunswick Police Department

Patrolman Robert S. Heathcock, North Brunswick Police Department

Patrolman Howard J. Kline Jr., Milltown Police Department

Chief Harry C. Kuell, Sr., East Brunswick Police Department

Patrolman John Lebed, Franklin Township Police Department

Patrolman Joseph Lewis, Woodbridge Police Department

Detective Richard E. Mcgilvery, Rutgers University Police Department

Guard Joseph Michalowski, Middlesex County Sheriff’s Department

Patrolman Frank J. Papaianni, Edison Police Department

Patrolman Thomas E. Raji, Perth Amboy Police Department

Patrolman Walter Rusinak, Carteret Police Department

Patrolman William A. Savage, New Brunswick Police Department

Trooper Christopher S. Scales, New Jersey State Police

Deputy Chief Robert Shanley, Carteret Police Department

Patrolman William I. Van Arsdale, New Brunswick Police Department

Patrolman Alvin Williams, Woodbridge Police Department

Trooper Warren G. Yenser, New Jersey State Police.

The first officer to have died in the line of duty was Patrolman Van Arsdale of the New Brunswick Police Department, due to a drowning in 1856. The most recent officer to die in the line of duty was Patrolman Raji of the Perth Amboy Police Department, who died in 2008 due to a vehicular homicide.

Eleven of the officers died from gunfire; four were struck by motor vehicles; three from medical-related incidents; three from motor vehicle crashes, and two each died either from drowning, stabbing, or vehicular assault.